A BILL to amend and reenact §7-10-4 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to hearings before magistrates
involving the seizure of abandoned, neglected or cruelly
treated animals.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new section, designated §7-1-14; and that §7-
10-4 of said code be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:ARTICLE 1. COUNTY COMMISSIONS GENERALLY.

(a)
Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, any county commission may adopt ordinances, rules and
regulations providing for the custody and care of animals that have been abandoned, neglected or cruelly treated for the protection of
any such animal and to prevent it from becoming a public nuisance
or risk to public health or safety or the environment.
(b) Any such ordinance, rule or regulation may require each
owner to provide for each of his or her animals:
(1) Adequate food which provides sufficient quantity and
nutritive value to maintain each animal in good health;
(2) Adequate water which provides easy access to clean, fresh,
potable water of a drinkable temperature in sufficient volume and
suitable intervals to maintain normal hydration for each animal;
(3) Adequate shelter to protect the animal from the elements
and other animals;
(4) Adequate space in the primary enclosure for the particular
animal depending upon its age, size, species and weight which is
regularly cleaned to prevent an unsanitary accumulation of urine
and feces;
(5) Adequate exercise to assure that the animal maintains
normal muscle tone and mass for the age, species, size and
condition of the animal; and
(6) Veterinary care when needed or to prevent suffering or
disease transmission.
(c) Any such ordinance, rule or regulation may limit the
number of animals owned, kept or maintained by an individual, group
or organization, whether public or private based on the person's
ability to provide for the animals as set forth in subsection (b)
of this section.
(d) Any such ordinance, rule or regulation shall provide
appropriate penalties for violations and shall authorize humane
officers to take possession of any animal that is not properly
cared for as required by such ordinance, rule or regulation.ARTICLE 10. HUMANE OFFICERS.

§7-10-4

. Custody and care of animals abandoned, neglected or
cruelly treated; hearing; bonds; liability for costs;
liens; exclusions.
(a) Subject to the provisions of subsection (h) of this
section, a humane officer shall take possession of any animal,
including birds or wildlife in captivity, known or believed to be
abandoned, neglected, deprived of necessary sustenance, shelter,
medical care or reasonable protection from fatal freezing or heat
exhaustion or cruelly treated or used as defined in sections
nineteen and nineteen-a, article eight, chapter sixty-one of this
code.
(b) The owner or persons in possession, if his or her identity
and residence are known, of any animal seized pursuant to
subsection (a) of this section shall be provided written notice of
the seizure, his or her liability for the cost and care of the
animal seized as provided in this section and the right to request
a hearing in writing before a magistrate in the county where the
animal was seized. The magistrate court shall schedule any hearing
requested within ten working days of the receipt of the request.
The failure of an owner or person in possession to request a hearing within five working days of the seizure is prima facie
evidence of the abandonment of the animal. At the hearing, if
requested, the magistrate shall determine by a preponderance of the
evidence if probable cause exists to believe that the animal was
abandoned, neglected or deprived of necessary sustenance, shelter,
medical care or reasonable protection from fatal freezing or heat
exhaustion or otherwise treated or used cruelly as set forth in
this section.
(c)(1) Upon finding of probable cause,If a hearing is
requested and the magistrate finds by a preponderance of the
evidence that the owner did abandon, neglect or cruelly treat the
animal, or if no hearing is requested and the magistrate finds
probable causeby a preponderance of the evidence, based upon the
affidavit of the humane officer, that the owner did abandon,
neglect or cruelly treat the animal, the magistrate shall enter an
order awarding custody of the animal to any humane officer for
further disposition in accordance with reasonable practices for the
humane treatment of animals. After hearing the evidence, if the
magistrate is not convinced the animal was neglected or cruelly
treated, he or she may dismiss the action and order the animal be
returned to the owner. If the magistrate finds in favor of the
humane officer, the owner of the animal shall post a bond with the
court in an amount sufficient to provide for the reasonable costs
of care, medical treatment and provisions for the animal for at
least thirty days. The bond shall be filed with the court within
five days following the court's finding of probable causeagainst the owner. At the end of the time for which expenses are covered
by the original bond if the animal remains in the care of the
humane officer and the owner desires to prevent disposition of the
animal by the humane officer, the owner shall post an additional
bond with the court within five days of the expiration of the
original bond. During this period the humane officer is authorized
to place the animal in a safe private home or other safe private
setting in lieu of retaining the animal in an animal shelter. The
person whose animal is seized is liable for all costs of the care
of the seized animal.
(2) If a bond has been posted in accordance with subdivision
(1) of this subsection, the custodial animal care agency may draw
from the bond the actual reasonable costs incurred by the agency in
providing care, medical treatment and provisions to the impounded
animal from the date of the initial impoundment to the date of the
final disposition of the animal.
(d) Any person whose animal is seized and against whom the
magistrate enters a finding of probable cause is rendered pursuant
to this section is liable during any period it remains in the
possession of the humane officer for the reasonable costs of care,
medical treatment and provisions for the animal not covered by the
posting of the bond as provided in subdivision (1), subsection (c)
of this section. The magistrate shall require the person liable
for these costs to post bond to provide for the maintenance of the
seized animal. This expense, if any, becomes a lien on the animal
and must be discharged before the animal is released to the owner following the acquittal of the owner or withdrawal of the
complaint. Upon acquittaldismissal or withdrawal of the
complaint, any unused portion of posted bonds shall be returned to
the owner. Upon a criminal convictionfinding in favor of the
humane officer, all interest in the impounded animal shall transfer
to the humane officer for the further disposition in accordance
with reasonable practices for the humane treatment of animals. Any
additional expense above the value of the animal may be recovered
by the humane officer or custodial agency.
(e) If After the humane officer takes possession of the animal
pursuant to thea finding of probable causeby a magistrate that
the animal has been abandoned, neglected or cruelly treated and a
licensed veterinarian determines that the animal should be humanely
destroyed to end its suffering, the veterinarian may order the
animal to be humanely destroyed and neither the humane officer,
animal euthanasia technician nor the veterinarian is subject to any
civil or criminal liability as a result of such action.
(f) The term "humanely destroyed" as used in this section
means:
(1) Humane euthanasia of an animal by hypodermic injection by
a licensed veterinarian or by an animal euthanasia technician
certified in accordance with the provisions of article ten-a,
chapter thirty of this code; or
(2) Any other humane euthanasia procedure approved by the
American Veterinary Medical Association, the Humane Society of the
United States or the American Humane Association.
(g) In case of an emergency in which an animal cannot be
humanely destroyed in an expeditious manner, an animal may be
destroyed by shooting if:
(1) The shooting is performed by someone trained in the use of
firearms with a weapon and ammunition of suitable caliber and other
characteristics designed to produce instantaneous death by a single
shot; and
(2) Maximum precaution is taken to minimize the animal's
suffering and to protect other persons and animals.
(h) The provisions of this section do not apply to farm
livestock, as defined in subsection (d), section two, article
ten-b, chapter nineteen of this code; poultry, gaming fowl or
wildlife kept in private or licensed game farms if kept and
maintained according to usual and accepted standards of livestock;
poultry, gaming fowl, wildlife or game farm production and
management; nor to the humane use of animals or activities
regulated under and in conformity with the provisions of 7 U. S. C.
§2131, et seq., and the regulations promulgated thereunder.